A Tale of Two Breaks

I have a hate/hate relationship with Panini.  I'm not a fan of logo-less cards and I generally think their baseball card designs are somewhat lacking in...oh I don't know, let's call it "look-a-bility." Yea, that's it.  I struggle with my "ability" to look at their baseball cards because the designs aren't good.

When I saw Panini was coming out with Donruss again I have to say I was looking forward to it.  Something different, yet familiar.  Something that, if done right, might make me start to overlook the lack of a license.  I was looking forward to it so much that I bought in to two different Donruss breaks.

The first break was being held by Brent of BrentandBecca.  Most everybody knows Brent as the guy who breaks a UPS truckload of cases of new product and sells like crazy on Ebay.  I don't know how many group breaks he does, but I think this Donruss break might have put a stop to it.  I bought the Rangers in his 16 box case break.  It cost me $40.  That's roughly the same price two blasters would cost (if they sold blasters).

The second break I bought into was being held by Colbey over at Cardboard Collections.  His break was $13 for a pick a team/get a random team type break of two Donruss boxes.

If I asked you to guess which break gave me the best results, I think most of you would say the 16 box break.  Well, you'd be wrong.  I know box/case breaks are a gamble.  You're not guaranteed anything, no matter how many boxes are involved.  You should be able to expect some sort of reasonable collation.

Let's start with the 16 box case break by Brent.  Let me also start by saying the criticism you read here is in no way directed at Brent.  He busts a TON of product.  I've purchased from him on Ebay several times.  He ships quick and charges a fair price for shipping.  Any critical remarks are directed squarely at Panini.

I didn't get to watch the break live, but I did watch it later.  I kept track of the hits, but I've since misplaced that list.  I remember Brent got three of the same Box Toppers in a row (Zimmerman).  He even pulled the same redemption for an Evan Gattis auto in back to back boxes.  As for Rangers, this is what I got.

I got the Jurickson Profar box topper.  I was hoping to get this one and was fortunate Brent pulled it from the 2nd or 3rd box.

I got 4 complete Texas Rangers team sets and plenty of other duplicates.

I got one serial numbered card which was this Adrian Beltre Press Proof #86/199.  There were a good number of serial numbered cards in the case, but they were the same players over and over.

The duplicate relics in the break were ridiculous.  I scored two Ian Kinsler Game Gear relics.  The number of players that showed up repeatedly was very disappointing and if you watch the video of the break, you can here it in Brent's voice.

I managed to get one auto of Michael Choice.  I was happy to get it the way the break went.  I think there were three Dave Parker autos in the break and if my memory is correct, the Pirates did pretty well in the break.

The "best" card in the case was some Edwin Encarnacion relic card #/25.  If that's a case hit then Panini sucks even more than I thought.

I was happy enough with the design of the base cards.  I've never been a huge fan of cards featuring the backs of players, but I know that's easier to show without getting any logos in the way.

Let's move on to the two box break held by Colbey.

I scored an Elite Dominators Nolan Ryan #696/999.  This was one of the cards I wanted most.

I also got a Michael Choice Rated Rookie Gold Press Proof #54/99.

Colbey pulled two Rangers autos in two boxes.  First up was Mitch Moreland.  That would sure look nice with an on-card auto.

The second auto of the break was Jurickson Profar.  After the Brent break, I didn't expect one auto from Colbey, much less two.

I did get another team set from Colbey's break.

That's the story of two different breaks of the same product.  I wish Panini's collation had been better on Brent's case, but what can you do?  It is what it is and you take your chances anytime you get in a break. I'd do another break with Brent if and when the burn of this one goes away.  I'd also do another one with Colbey.  He sure got some good Rangers boxes for this one.